Itsy Bitsy Spider
by Savy13
Summary: William glared further, as if trying to assess if the butler was sincere or not. "You didn't know?" he asked. "Know what?" Sebastian hissed, his red eyes narrowing almost as much as the reaper's. "Claude Faustus was your son." Mpreg past WilliamXSebastian, WilliamXGrell
1. Introduction

_It had been a week since Ciel Phantomhive had been declared dead to the world. His memorial had been held, and tears had been shed as Ciel's two rings were buried in an otherwise empty coffin (provided by the Undertaker, at a very nice discount, or so he said), and those who knew him had begun to mourn. _

_ But at the moment Ciel was not rotting away in a shallow grave. He was in France, on a patio of a rented room, smelling the vapors of the tea that Sebastian had ordered from room service. It was unfortunate that he could no longer taste it. _

_ "How is the tea, Young Master?" The butler asked from off to the side. _

_ "Fine." Ciel sighed, taking in another breath. "How are the preparations coming?" _

_ "Adequately, my Lord. I have secured us a cabin on a boat headed for the America's in a weeks time." Sebastian said, a bit less courteously than he would have had Ciel still been human. The demon did not think he would ever become accustomed to his loss of freedom. He had certainly not been prepared to be a butler for all of eternity, and he was less than pleased with the hand he had been dealt. _

_ Both demons were wrapped in their thoughts, so they were surprised- a feat indeed- when a voice spoke from above them. _

_ "Found you at last." _

_ They both turned to look at the roof, where none other than William T. Spears stood. His glasses glinted in the parisian sun, and he held his scythe in a grip that would snap a mortal weapon in half. His indifferent demeanor had gone, and he had never looked more menacing. _

_ "Mr. Spears." Ciel said with well concealed surprise. "How-"_

_ "I saw the notification of death that you left for Grell." William interrupted. "But I knew that you weren't. Tracking you was easy." _

_ "You are getting sloppy, Sebastian." Ciel frowned. _

_ "My humble apologies, my Lord." the older demon said with a half bow before turning back to the reaper. "But that still begs the question, why are you here?" _

_ "You know why, you disgrace. I knew demons were scum, but even I never expected this of you." Will glared. _

_ "I beg your pardon?"_

_ "Don't play innocent. It doesn't suit you."_

_ "Forgive me, but I have no inkling as to what you are talking about." _

_ "I can't imagine a Being, demon or otherwise, that would so heartlessly kill their own son." _

_ There was a long silence. _

_ "Oh, well this is interesting." Ciel said at last, setting down his tea and moving to the edge of his seat to better witness the goings on. _

_ "I... My what?" Sebastian asked, truly speechless for the first time that Ciel had ever seen. William glared further, as if trying to assess if the butler was sincere or not. _

_ "You didn't know?" he asked. _

_ "Know what?" Sebastian hissed, his red eyes narrowing almost as much as the reaper's. _

_ "Claude Faustus was your son."_


	2. In the Beginning

**The present is in italics. Warnings for implied hate sex, M/M. **

Two Centuries Previous

William T. Spears had always been a very promising reaper. He was extremely efficient, and was known for being incredibly thorough. He had been a steady B- average student, and received his reaper's glasses after passing his exam on the first attempt. It had not taken long for him to ascend to being the head of his department.

That being said, he had a blacker mark on his record than most. It began on his first job after he had been promoted. In addition to being in charge of his devision, he was also expected to take care of the more troubling problems- such as rogue demons. The one he had been sent after was known as Michaelis, and had no first name at the time. He had been pilfering souls he was not contracted with, and William was sent to deal with the problem.

The more experienced demon quickly gained the upper hand in the battle, pinning the young reaper to the ground. William had lost both his glasses and his scythe, and was beginning to get desperate. So he did something a little... unorthodox as a last resort. He pushed up against his opponent, and pressed his lips to the demon's. It worked, if only for a moment. William was able to get away, but was soon overcome again when he failed to find his weapon or his glasses.

"What a pathetic excuse for a kiss." The demon had hissed. And then William was being kissed again, dazed by a talented and sinful tongue. William clawed and bit in return, but the kiss they shared only deepened, and resulted in both men supporting identical problems straining against their trousers.

"This means nothing." William hissed as his jacket was ripped off. "I still hate you."

"Likewise." Michaelis agreed. "But that makes it so much more interesting, don't you think?"

"Shut up." William snapped at him. Then he growled in frustration at the many buttons the demon wore. "I hate you. I hate you, and I hate your shirt."

"Let me assist you." Michaelis growled, tearing the fabric off in one swipe. What value did such human items have to him? "Am I your first, little reaper?"

"I said shut up."

...

_"__On that night two hundred years ago-" _

_"__I thought we agreed never to speak of that night again." Sebastian snarled. _

_"__Well, you weren't left with the living reminder." William sneered back. _

_"__This keeps getting more interesting." Ciel smiled. "But why was Sebastian's demon child left with you? Reapers detest demons." _

_"__The child wasn't foisted off on me, Lord Phantomhive. I bore it." William said, dropping back into his usual monotone. _

_The young demon grew red as he began to splutter. _

_"__What! But-but you are a man!" _

_"__Indeed. What an astute observation." _

_"__But you-! You are-! You can't-!" _

_"__I assure you, as a reaper, I can. If you need that discussion, please refer to Sebastian. I have no intentions of ever going through the detailed facts of life again." _

_Ciel blinked and choked, continuing to splutter. William turned back to Sebastian, who now seemed to be made of marble with his mouth slightly open and his unfocused eyes looking off into the distance. _

_William sighed. _

_"__I suppose I should start from the beginning, then." _


	3. Deadly Efficient

"That bastard did this on purpose."

William was not happy. Not happy at all.

It had been two months since his encounter with Michaelis, which had left him limping for a week. Fortunately, he had been able to pass it off as an injury he gained while fighting the demon.

But now came an entirely new problem.

William was pregnant. With a demon's child.

Of course the bloody menace had done it on purpose. What better way to get revenge on a reaper? As soon as it was discovered he would be disgraced, lose his position, and be cast out of the reapers forever.

And morning sickness just topped it all off.

"Damn demons..." William growled before loosing the contents of his stomach to his office toilet again.

He groaned as he heard the current bane of his existence come crashing through the office door. Why did this have to happen to him?

"WILLY! The mean man down at storage won't give me a scythe-! Willy? Will dear, where are you?"

So of course the red-headed demon flounced directly into the bathroom without a thought.

"Don't you knock?" William snapped, closing his eyes in frustration.

"No." the shinigami shrugged before assessing the state he found his boss in. "Willy! Are you sick? What's wrong?"

"Nothing that concerns you." William drawled. "Richard won't give you a scythe because I specifically told him not to after you nearly decapitated one of the other recruits."

"Oh, William, you're no fun." Grell pouted, flipping his shoulder-length hair.

Grell Sutcliff was what could be called an anomaly among reapers. Most were calm and wore the traditional black, and Sutcliff stuck out like a flamingo in the Antarctic. He was known for his flamboyant personality, his passion for the color red, and -unfortunately for William- his complete disregard of rules. Will doubted if Grell would ever become anything other than a rookie, no matter how many years of service.

"Come now, why are you here at work? If you are ill you should be at home!" Grell continued.

"I am not ill."

"Oh yes, I forgot you liked to divulge your breakfast for fun. Come now, Willy, I'm not stupid."

William rolled his eyes.

"I just got a little nauseous. Nothing to worry about. Now go bother somebody else."

Of course, he did no such thing. Grell simply made himself comfortable by sitting on the counter, in a provocative pose as usual.

"Oh Will, you wound me."

"Not yet I haven't. I would have killed you already if it wasn't for all the paperwork I would have to fill out."

"Such a temper, Willy. I've never seen you so emotional before. It sets me all afire..."

William shivered. He didn't want to think about sexual relations at the moment. Or ever again.

"Don't-" William pleaded before heaving again. Grell lifted an eyebrow.

"How rude! I am not that distasteful am I darling?"

"Shut up, Grell. And I am not your darling."

"In all seriousness, Willy, it takes a lot for a reaper to get sick. If you are ill it must be something bad. Come, tell your lover dear."

"Stop talking like that!" William shouted, his voice reverberating off the walls.

Grell blinked in surprise before crossing his arms.

"Now I _know_ something is wrong. You never react to my teasing. What's changed? Tired of being a virgin?"

William gritted his teeth and didn't look up. There was a small, tense silence.

"Or..." Grell said, slowly putting the dots together. "You _aren't _a virgin anymore... Oh, Willy, are you pre-"

"Don't say it!"

"You are!"

"Grell-!"

"Oh, tell me _everything_! Every little detail! Was it wonderful? Slow? Rough? Was he domineering? Or was he a romantic? Speaking of which, who is the dear daddy? Oh I am so jealous! Was it Rodney? He has had his eyes on you... Or Demetri, he's a handsome fellow- Oh! I know it was Henrik! The way he passes your files to you in the morning-!"

William looked up and raised an eyebrow.

"I beg your pardon? What does that have to do with anything?"

"It _is_ him, isn't it!"

"No. It isn't."

Grell pouted. "Was I close?"

"Not even remotely."

"Is he even a reaper at all? You don't seem to be the type to go for humans, Willy, but I suppose I could say the same thing about coworkers. Or anybody, really."

"And to think you are the closest thing I have to a friend."

"Oh, I am so flattered!"

"Be quiet."

"So is it someone I know?" Grell pressed.

William waited a moment before answering. "No."

"Well then he isn't a reaper. I know everybody here. I make it a point to. And he isn't a human?"

There was another pause. "No."

Now came a hesitation on Grell's end. "... An angel...?"

"Dear God, no!"

"Well, I am baffled. I have no idea who-"

Grell stopped mid-sentence as he watched his normally stoic co-worker ever so slowly dissolve into tears.

"Willy...?"

The red-head had no idea what to do, and awkwardly slid from the counter to the floor to be closer. Then he gently placed his hands on the sobbing man's shoulders.

"A demon." William whispered. "The father is a demon..."

Grell moved William out of the bathroom into the office, and stayed beside him until he had regained control of himself once more. The red-reaper made certain that he was no longer about to cry before going on.

"...So was it any good?"

The answer he got was a smack in the face.

"Ow! Willy!"

"You insensitive prick! This isn't a joke! My job, my entire life, even my child is on the line! I would be fired and disgraced if anyone found out, and likely loose the baby too!" William ceased his rant to grab Grell by the necktie and pull him close. "You can't tell anyone. Not one soul."

"Of course not! How could you think so lowly of me, Will, really. Although... There is one thing you could do."

"And what would that be?"

"The child will certainly need a female figure in their life. And I would make such a deadly efficient mother-"

"No." William said firmly.

"Oh please, Willy?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"So mean! Fine then, I might just have to go tell the whole department of this new development, I wonder what they would think. I believe there are some betting pools as to whether or not you are as frigid as you seem. Elliot placed down twenty pounds on the bet that you were a hellcat in bed-"

A muscle twitched in William's eye as he glared.

"Fine." He eventually relented. "You can be it's godmother."

In the meantime, he had Elliot to go seek revenge upon...

...

"Grell_?_"

_William and Ciel both looked at Sebastian, whom had spoken up for the first time since the shinigami had begun his story. He looked paler than usual, if possible, but his red eyes flashed in disbelief. _

_ "Forgive me, I know I do not have much right to wave my opinion, but... _Grell_?" He asked again. _

_ William pushed up his glasses with his scythe as he gave the demon a stony glare. _

_ "Yes. He wasn't so much my first choice as my only choice." _

_ "I have a question." Ciel said, causing the reaper to turn his deathly glare away from the demon. "If being pregnant was so much of a problem, why didn't you end it? I'm sure there were ways of terminating the fetus, being a death god and all-"_

_ William gave an almost primal hiss through his teeth. _

_ "This is the mindset of humans! You have much yet to learn, little demon. Children among the supernatural are rare, rarer than you can possibly imagine. No divine being would dare harm another's divine child, be they demon, angel, or shinigami. I already cherished the life inside of me, no matter whom the father was, or the troubles it might cause." _

_ Ciel pondered this a few moments more before speaking again. _

_ "But if children are so revered why did you fear for its safety then?" he asked eventually. _

_ "Just because they would not have harmed my child initially does not mean they would not have taken him from me, or branded us both as outcasts, or waited until he was old enough to be put to death." William said in an icy voice. "My only chance at giving him a good life was to pretend that he was entirely reaper, which I did. Yet still I feared the truth would be discovered."_

_ "But... _Grell_?" Sebastian said again. _

_ "Yes, Michaelis." William snapped. "Grell. Grell Sutcliffe. And while I do agree that he is a useless reaper, a disgrace of a shinigami, and a hopeless fool- I do have to admit that he made, as he might say, a deadly efficient godmother. And before that, one hell of a loyal friend."_


	4. The Pregnancy

William groaned as he let his head smack onto his desk. He was now four months pregnant, and was beginning to develop a bit of a pouch. Although nothing was officially confirmed, most of the office had their suspicions, and none of them were being put to rest thanks to the loose tongue of a certain red-head.

"WILLY!"

Speak of the devil.

William raised his head only very slightly, so that he could see Grell over his stacks of paperwork. The shinigami had not been kidding when he said that he never knocked.

"What?" William snapped.

"So mean! What has your panties in a twist now, dearest?"

"You."

"What did I do?"

"What haven't you done."

"I think you mean _who_ haven't I done, sweetie."

"That is exactly what I mean!" William snapped, standing up and throwing a paperweight at the reaper's head. Grell had to duck to avoid getting hit with it. "All of your damn innuendos and flirting!" William began pelting him with the pens on his desk.

"Now now, William, calm do-ouch!"

"I will not calm down! You've made people start to suspect I'm carrying! And what's worse, they think _you_ are the father!" One of the pens hit Grell between the eyes and burst, sending blue ink all over the reaper's clothes, clashing with the red. William collapsed into his chair and lied his head on the desk again with a huff. He was ashamed of his childish behavior, but there was no way he was going to tell Grell that now...

There was a few moments of silence before Grell spoke up, ignoring the tantrum that had just occurred.

"Can I get you anything?"

William sniffed sadly at the kindness his friend was showing him.

"I'm kind of hungry... A peanut butter sandwich please?" He asked, not lifting his head. He was too ashamed to look at Grell right now.

"Of course."

"... With pickles? And olives?"

"... Um, alright."

"Grell?"

"Yes, William?"

"I'm sorry."

"I know."

...

"So when do you plan on making an honest woman out of me, William dearest?"

"Grell, even if I was planning to marry you -which I am not- I am the one that is pregnant. Not you."

"So? If you expect me to be the one to propose you have another thing coming! And I expect it to be romantic too! With lots of candles and red roses!"

William sighed and pushed his glasses farther up on his nose. This particular discussion was taking place in Will's office yet again, as he attempted to file away some paperwork while Grell laid splayed across his desk, staring at the ceiling with a dreamy smile on his face.

"It's going to be a girl. I just know it."

"If you say so Grell." William deadpanned.

"And I will buy her all sorts of little red outfits, and red bows and pacifiers- Oh, Willy! We should plan a baby shower!" Grell leapt into a sitting position to grab William by the collar in his enthusiasm. The other reaper responded in kind with such a cold stare that eventually Grell cleared his throat awkwardly and let go, lying back down.

"Maybe not, then."

There was a few minutes span of silence in which William actually managed to squeeze some work into, before Grell spoke up again.

"But even if you _don't_ want a shower, there is something that simply _must_ be done."

"And that is?"

"Choosing a name of course. I am thinking Claudia if it is a girl, and Hershel if it is a boy."

"There is no way I am naming my child Hershel."

"Perhaps you could name it Grell, then."

"No."

"...William Jr?"

"Grell!"

"Grell it is then! I knew you would grow to like that name. I'm sure your son shall do it a great honor."

William groaned and suppressed the urge to strangle the smiling shinigami. He was going to drive him insane.

...

William kept getting rounder as time went on. There was now no question as to if he was pregnant. It was the most he could do to keep people from asking about the father. Most people continued to assume that it was Grell, who took great offense to that.

"I am a lady!" He he would huff. "If it were my child, I would be the one carrying it!"

While William still didn't appreciate the rumors, he had bigger problems to think about. What if the child was born a girl? Female reapers were known to be born, but they were incredibly rare, which was why male reapers where able to reproduce in the first place. But there had not been a girl in William's family for years. The gene would be nearly impossible to find in his bloodline. Or what if the child had demonic traits? Scales or horns, or whatever demons had in their natural forms...

Grell had dragged Will along to the doctor to get officially looked at, but all they could say was that the baby was healthy and seemed to be growing at the right rate. Anything else would have to wait until the baby was born. There were other, more supernatural options of learning more, but all of those required a third party who knew the practice, and William wanted to involve as few people as possible. Just in case.

"I feel like a house." William groused.

"Stop pouting. You are positively glowing." Grell told him.

"Oh shut up. That is just something you say to a pregnant person so you don't have to tell them that they actually look like shit."

"Will, you cursed! I don't think I've ever heard you curse before! I am so proud!"

"I'm pregnant. I can curse if I want to."

"Of course you can, Willy."

"Don't you dare condescend me, Grell Sutcliff!"

"Wouldn't dream of it dear."


	5. Arrivals

_"Wait..." Ciel said, interrupting. "I just thought... How does the baby get out?" _

_ "The same way it got in." William said, somewhat annoyed at the subject matter. Ciel grew pale at the thought and failed to speak twice. _

_ "That sounds excruciating." He finally squeaked in a voice several octaves too high._

_ "Were you under the impression that childbirth was painless?" William asked. _

_ A faint tinge of color returned to Ciel's face as he flushed in embarrassment, but on the whole remained fairly colorless. William gave a small smirk in satisfaction at silencing the Phantomhive before continuing with his story. _

_..._

It had been a long eight hours. The most tiring hours of William's life. He lay there gasping, listening to his child cry for the first time.

"You have a healthy baby boy Mr. Spears." The midwife said, passing the bundle into his arms. William said nothing at first, too in awe to speak. No scales. No horns. Even his eyes... His eyes looked like Will's.

"Shall I go get the father, Mr. Spears?" the midwife asked, motioning to the bedroom door. William had given birth at home, in case there was a problem.

"Sutcliff isn't the father, he is the godparent." William explained. "But, yes, thank you."

The man gave a nod and left the new family alone.

William looked down at the precious boy in his arms. No, his son was entirely reaper. He could tell. There was nothing demonic about this sweet baby whose cries had subsided to a small fuss in his father's arms. He would do anything for him. He would quit his job and live as a human if it came to it.

The midwife gave a small knock before coming back in with Grell. The red shinigami's eyes widened as he sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the child in awe.

"What name shall I put down on the birth certificate, Mr. Spears?" the midwife asked.

"Claude." William said after a moment. "Claude Anthony Spears."

Grell had the grace to wait until later, once the midwife had left, to burst with satisfaction.

"Oh Will! He is just beautiful! And his name! I knew you liked my name ideas!"

"I didn't use any of the names you suggested." William huffed feebly.

"But I said Claudia if it was a girl! And you named him Claude! But where did you get Anthony?"

"I like the name is all." WIlliam said, turning back to his son, who was now sleeping peacefully. "It is also the name of the human's saint for lost things."

"What? Hoping he may be able to find his father?" Grell asked.

"No." William snapped. "I hope he never meets his father. I want him to have nothing to do with Michaelis. I only hope he finds himself."

"A bit cheesy there, Willy." Grell smiled.

"I just like the name." William repeated, seething.

"That's the biggest lie I've ever heard. You were being sentimental, and you know it. I didn't know you had it in you to be so saccharine! Oh, hold me!" Grell said, opening his arms.

"Not on your life. And be quiet, if you wake him up I will strangle you." William threatened.

"Noted."

...

William was working on paperwork when his unexpected visitor arrived. He tried to do as much of his job as he could from home, since he didn't trust his temporary replacement to do things correctly. At least Grell was off bothering him instead of William.

He nearly had a heart attack when he heard someone speak behind him.

"Heheheh, you never stop working, do you Spears?"

William dropped the stack of papers he was holding and spun around, instinctively checking the bassinet beside his desk where Claude was sleeping as he confronted the intruder.

The Undertaker stood before him, eyes hidden, and a wide smile as usual. William had met him once or twice before, the man was a legend. But he didn't really care for legends that could sneak into his house.

"What are you doing here! How did you get in!" he shouted.

"Doesn't matter. I just came to see the little hybrid." the Undertaker said, stepping closer to the baby to get a better look. William put himself between the two of them, not letting his superior get any closer.

"Hybrid? What are you talking about?" William asked, not letting his panic show.

"Oh, you know. The demon's child you carried, heheheh."

"Stay away from us." William said as the other reaper took another step closer. His panic was growing now. He knew! Somehow he knew!

"Heheheh, relax, Spears. I won't tell anyone. I am quite curious about the little tyke. I just wanted you to know I'd be stopping by every now and again to check on him."

"What do you want with my son? How did you even know he was part demon?" William asked, not relaxing in the slightest.

"Doesn't matter." the Undertaker said again with a smile. "See you soon, Spears." Then he left the father standing over his slumbering son, William shaking in anxiety.

**Review, please!**


	6. Unsettling Discoveries

"-and don't forget to feed him-"

"Honestly, William. I know how to take care of him. I'm over here all the time." Grell said, rolling his eyes.

"I know... I just..." William sighed.

It was the first time William would be going back to work since he had Claude, and now he was questioning his sanity in leaving his son with Grell of all people. Sutcliff had nearly decapitated a new recruit (_again_) and was demoted (_again_). He was now on very last reserve, and would not be called out for a job unless he was the only choice. It worked well for William, since Claude could be watched over during the day by his godparent, but now he was beginning to think twice about it all.

"Maybe I should wait to go back to work-"

"Will. Stop this. You are going to have to be separated at some point. You are just going to have to get used to it."

"Okay. Okay. I'm going..." William sighed, going out the front door. He looked back once more, and then he was gone.

...

_"__You left your child with that freak?" Ciel asked. Sebastian looked as though he was very much thinking the same thing, but didn't think he had the right to say it. _

_"__Not one of my finer moments." William agreed. "Particularly in this case. As I said before, Grell made a good godparent. Just a horrible babysitter." _

_"__Oh dear Hell. What did he do?" Sebastian asked, his eyes widening. _

_"__Everything was perfectly alright until about an hour later. Grell, as I mentioned, was on very last reserve. He would only be called in for a job if there was no other choice left. The reapers were unfortunately so backed up that day that they did indeed need every hand available. Even I had already been sent out. If I was still in the office, I would not have let them call him. But in any case, I wrestled the story out of him at a later date."_

_..._

"But I can't!" the shinigami said into William's landline receiver. "I'm babysitting!"

There was a pause as someone from the other end spoke. "Yes, I know it must be important if you need me, but-" Grell let out a dramatic huff as his correspondent cut him off in mid-sentence. "Fine. Fine! I will think of something."

Then he hung up harshly, and turned to look at the baby he was sitting. Claude by now had reached the age where he could crawl, and tended to grab everything he could get close enough to put his little hands around. At the moment, he was sitting on the kitchen floor and focused intently on chewing a wooden spoon that he had gotten ahold of.

Grell looked thoughtfully at his godchild for several more seconds before coming to a decision and scooping him up.

"Come on, Claude darling. How do you feel about going on a field trip?"

Claude answered by pulling Grell's glasses off of the reaper's face.

"Hey, now! I need those! Stop that!"

...

Once Grell had reclaimed his glasses, he went on to his designated spot, holding Claude with one hand and his scythe in the other. The scythe itself was a disgrace. It wasn't even standard issue! Since he had been placed in last reserve, he had been given the training scythe given to students; a simple sickle with a wooden handle.

Grell tried not to think about it so much.

But now it was time to get down to work. The job was in London, a messy murder down a side street. And such pretty blood everywhere. The victim was taking his last few gasps of breath on the cobblestone road, and his eyes widened in fear when he saw Grell.

"Hello darling." Grell told him pleasantly. "Lets get to work, shall we?"

A mark of a great reaper was being able to make so small of an incision that it wasn't noticeable to the naked eye. Even the training scythes were sharp enough to be able to do so. But that had never mattered to Grell. He simply placed Claude down beside him and slashed at the dying human, making an impressive gash. More blood spewed forth as the cinematic record began to play. It was rather boring to be honest. He was a regular man with an ordinary job, and a plain family. The only thing exciting that he had ever done was stand up for a girl being mugged, and that had led him here, dying in the back alley's of London.

"Well, darling, it looks as if you are going to die today." Grell told the victim, who was rapidly loosing consciousness. "But look at the bright side, at least you get to die in such an interesting way. At the rate you were going, you probably would have died of old age, or disease, or some other mediocre- _Claude_!"

The reaper's train of thought had been broken when he looked over to the child beside him and saw that the young Spears had somehow gotten ahold of a cinematic strand and was now happily chewing on it. Grell grabbed ahold and began tugging it away from the baby's chubby hands.

"Claude! Get that out of your mouth! You don't know where it has been!" he chastised.

It took a moment, but eventually he pulled the record free and quickly reaped the soul he had been sent to gather. It wasn't like him not to finish the job dramatically, or at least finish up his previous monologue, but Grell was too shaken. Cinematic records were known to be volatile things, especially when they weren't handled correctly. Yet Claude had been able to tame a piece of one, and what was more, start to eat it. Grell knew that the baby couldn't _actually_ eat the record, but it disturbed him how close it could be considered to a human's soul. He started to wonder if Claude had more demon characteristics than he and William had previously believed...

"Your father isn't going to like this at all," he sighed.

...

"Let me get this straight," William seethed in a quiet voice that made Grell cower. "You took my son out on a job, left him unattended, and he started to chew on a cinematic record!"

"It wasn't my fault!" Grell pleaded. "Besides, I'm not the biggest issue here. Claude is. He seems to have inherited more from the demon than we originally thought."

"No!" William snapped. "Claude is nothing like them! He is a reaper, and only a reaper!"

"Willy-" Grell tried, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder only to have it immediately shrugged off. William tightened his arms and pulled his son closer to him. Claude tugged at his father's glasses, completely oblivious to the seriousness of the conversation that revolved around him.

"My son is not one of those monsters." William growled, now seeming to be trying to reassure himself more than anything.

"Says the one who was seduced by one of said monsters." Grell pointed out, gaining himself a withering stare.

"You are never babysitting again." William snapped at him.

...

_"__Of course, I could not stay true to my word." William said, the slightest of grimaces appearing on his face. "He was the only one I trusted with Claude, and he was the only other person who knew the truth. I couldn't risk anyone finding out."_

_"__So you let him babysit again!" Sebastian shouted, letting his opinion be known. For the most part he had stayed silent, but he was now beyond the point where he could sit in mute guilt. He was a demon, after all, and was not used to feeling so culpable and contrite. It was too foreign of a sensation for him._

_"__You have no right to criticize me when you were not even present for his childhood!" William snapped back in response. _

_"__And how was this my fault! I did not know our two species could reproduce, nor did you inform me of my own child, just because of your blind prejudice!" Sebastian growled. _

_"__Oh, and you mean to tell me that if I did tell you about Claude that you would have been there for him? That you wouldn't have disappeared, never to be seen again?" William asked skeptically, pushing up his glasses with his scythe. _

_"__No I would not have!" _

_There was silence from both William and Ciel as they looked at the furious demon. Sebastian composed himself, banishing most of the emotion from his face until all that was left was a snarl and a glint of anger in his red eyes. _

_"__I may be a demon," he said, straightening the lapels of his suit. "But I also would have been one hell of a father." _

_No one said anything for a while afterwards as Sebastian's words sunk in. This time it was William's turn to look ashamed and guilt-ridden. His son might still be alive if he had just told the father of his existence. _


	7. Growing Up So Fast

**I do not own Black Butler: The anime, the manga, or the musical. **

"Come on, Claude! Say Grell! You can do it!"

"Grell, you do realize how difficult it is for children to make the G, R, and L sounds, don't you?" William asked, raising an eyebrow at his fellow reaper.

"Claude is smart. He can do it." Grell said, waving his hand in dismissal. "Say Auntie Grell, now Claude."

Claude just looked up at his aunt with a curious expression.

"I told you." William shrugged.

"Well I don't see you trying to get him to say anything."

"Because I try not to repeat words like an idiot when other people can hear me. I assist him with his phonetics plenty when the two of us are alone."

"Can you even hear yourself,Willy? Assist his phonetics? How far does that stick reach up your ass, again?" he teased.

"Grell, please refrain from using that type of language around my son." William said sternly. "And despite your seeming fascination with my posterior, you will not ever get close enough to find out just how far my stick goes."

"You say that now. I refuse to give up until you relent."

"Don't hold your breath."

Grell sighed and looked at Claude.

"Your dad is infuriating, you know." He told him.

"Da!" Claude said.

Both of the older reapers froze.

"What?" William eventually asked.

"Da!" Claude repeated, reaching out for his father. William picked him up with an awed look on his face.

"I wanted Grell to be his first word!" the other reaper pouted.

"Da! Dadadadadadada!" Claude babbled, patting his father's face with each repetition.

William smiled.

...

"Look Dad!" a young Claude said, running up to his father as he walked in the door from work. "Auntie Grell gave me these!"

He held up a pair of gold-wire frame glasses and pushed them onto his face with a broad smile.

"Glasses?" William asked, putting down his briefcase beside the door. "But why? You don't need glasses."

Claude's eyes were the only piece of him that even William had to agree came from his demon ancestry. While they looked similar enough to the reaper green, as he grew they became more distinguishably golden in color. And what was more, he had perfect vision. Better than perfect. He could see things and details that William could not even when he had his glasses on. Now that William thought about it, giving him fake glasses was probably a good idea, just to mask his heritage from others.

"I know." Claude shrugged. "But when I wear them, I'm just like you!"

William's mouth opened in the smallest of gasps as his son continued.

"He even taught me your catch phrase!"

"My... my what?"

"Yeah. Auntie Grell's is that he's a deadly 'ficient reaper, and yours is this." Claude pulled out a pair of safety scissors from his pocket, made a serious face, and used the tiny tools to push up his glasses farther up his nose. William quickly confiscated them.

"Lets not put those close to your eyes, okay?" he said gently, while really thinking of all the ways he could murder Grell.

"But I want to be like you." Claude frowned.

William smiled as his heart warmed, and he ran his hand through his son's semi-messy hair.

"Claude, you don't have to be like me. You can be however you want. I'll love you no matter what."

...

William was fixing breakfast for himself and Claude when he turned around to find not only his son sitting at the table, but the Undertaker as well. He dropped his mug in shock, and it shattered against the floor, sending coffee everywhere.

"_How_ do you keep getting in here!" William shouted, his heart racing.

"Doesn't matter. I just came to see how your bouncing baby boy was doing. He's grown a bit, hasn't he?" The Undertaker said fondly, munching on a bone shaped biscuit and looking down at the small boy.

"Children tend to do that." William said dryly, bending over to clean up the mess. Why did none of the reapers he associate with _knock_?

"Can I have a biscuit?" Claude asked their guest, not fazed at all by the sudden appearance of the strange man.

"Just one. Don't want to spoil your breakfast, now do we?" The Undertaker said as he happily passed him one of his cookies.

"Thank you." Claude said politely before eating it.

"What are you doing here?" William cut in.

"Just checking up like I said I would. You have an intriguing boy. Very handsome. Just like his father, eh? heheheh."

William closed his eyes and slowly counted to ten to reign in his nerves and temper.

"Would you like some breakfast?" He finally asked, resigned.

"I would simply adore some. I will have some buttered scones, a mushroom omelette, and toast with Vegemite. Some crepes too if you have them." The Undertaker requested.

William ignored him and placed a plate of eggs before his guest, who smiled widely.

"My favorite," He said before digging in.

William had to imagine the trouble he would get into for killing such an important reaper in order to stop himself from strangling the man. Instead, he merely sighed and pushed up his glasses.

"I do have some other news for you. I happened to stop by the dispatch office on my way to the library, and since they were running short on staff, I was asked ever so politely to deliver this to you. Seems it was written by a friend of yours."

William took the memo sheet from him, where a hastily scrawled message was written in red ink.

_Willy, _

_Some shmuck assigned me clean-up duty this morning. You know how much I hate that! My hair always gets ruined. But anyways, I cannot sit for Claude this morning, and by the size of the mess that the recruits have made of this job, I most likely will not be done until after noon. Perhaps you could take Claude with you to the office? You know he has been dying to see where you work. I will come and get him as soon as I can. _

_Love, _

_Your Dearest Grell. _

William gave a groan.

"What is it, Daddy?" Claude asked, looking up from his plate.

"Your Auntie Grell was called on a job and cannot come babysit." He explained with a sigh.

"You know," the Undertaker said thoughtfully, "I could always look after-"

"No." William said sternly.

"Well you are no fun."

"Auntie Grell says that too." Claude told the grey reaper. "He also says daddy-"

"Lets not get into the habit of repeating things that your Auntie Grell has said." William said sternly. "Come now, Claude, finish eating so you can get dressed. You are coming to work with me today.'

...

"This one yours, William?" Eric Slingsby asked, getting on one knee for a better look. William didn't miss the piece of candy that the reaper subtly passed into his son's hand, but decided not to comment. Claude smiled shyly, and Eric responded with a soft grin. For such a rough looking man, he was incredibly gentle with children. It was a good thing, too, for his own husband, Alan, was due in June.

"Indeed. This is my son, Claude Spears." William nodded.

"I can tell. He looks just like you."

"I'm just like him too!" Claude spoke up. "Imma be an import'nt reaper one day, just like him! And I can do this too!"

Claude made a show of making his face stern, and pushed up his glasses, just like his Auntie Grell taught him to. Eric fought to keep a straight face for one...two... three seconds before bursting out laughing.

"You _are_ just like him." he agreed as he stood. "Keep it up and you might be head of the Dispatch Office too one day."

Claude beamed up at the reaper.

"I suspect I will be seeing you shortly, Mr. Spears." Eric said, giving a small bow in the child's direction before leaving.

Claude looked up at his father.

"I liked him a lot."

"I'm glad. Would you like to see my office now?"

"Yes please!" The young boy squealed. William took his son's hand and began to lead him through the hallways.

"You may eat the sweet Eric gave you only after you have eaten your lunch." he added.

Claude's eyes widened as he looked up at his father in surprise and awe.

"How'd you know about that?" he asked.

"I'm your father. I know everything."

"Nuh-uh. Auntie Grell says-"

"What did I say about repeating things your Aunt Grell has said?" William sighed, pushing up his glasses with his free hand.

"To not to."

"Good boy."

They reached William's office door, and he let them both inside after they were greeted by William's secretary Henrik. Claude's eyes went round and his mouth opened as he looked around. The office was very modern and streamlined. The colors were white and silver like rest of the building, but somehow managed to convey a little more class and import. The silver desk was large, but impeccably clean, and one of the walls was made up entirely by a window.

William spent the rest of the day explaining what exactly his job was to his continual wide eyed son, getting work done whenever he could.

He even took his son to some of the more interesting places, such as the storage where all the scythes were held.

"Which is Auntie Grell's?" Claude asked. "It's sup'osed to be here, right?"

William suppressed a twitch and motioned to the large custom scythe, which was not only under special surveillance, but also behind locked wire doors and chained to the wall. They couldn't be too careful when it came to Grell.

"It's so cool!"

William had to concede with his son on that point. Grell's scythe truly was a work of art. The shinigami had spent a year designing it to make it perfect, and he had done a wonderful job. If only he would stop being so reckless with it.

Not much was accomplished that morning by the department head, but it was the best time he could remember having at work in a long while.

...

"Willy, darling!" Grell cried, flouncing into the office just before lunch, without knocking. As usual. "Did you miss me?"

"Auntie Grell!" Claude shouted with a grin, running towards the flamboyant reaper, who began ticking him.

"There you are, the little light of my life! How is my bundle of mischief? Did you have a good day?"

"It was great! Daddy showed me all about his work, and your scythe, and Mister Eric gave me a sweet!"

"Did he now? Was it tasty?"

"I dunno yet. Daddy said I had to wait until after we eat." Claude pouted.

"Well that just won't do. I suspect we will just have to go eat then! To the cafeteria!"

Without letting William say a word, Grell swung a giggling Claude up onto his back, and charged out of the door. He had to follow after them with a jog to keep up. Those two were going to be the death of him.

**reeeeeviiieeeeeewwww**


	8. Resolve

One day William came home from work to find his entire house littered with what he was fairly certain was some sort of lace. All of it was in a similar state of tangled disrepair.

"I finally did it, Auntie Grell!" Came his son's voice from inside the living room. William cautiously walked in on the two, to find each of the room's inhabitants making something that looked similar to a lace doily. William wasn't an expert on such things. Claude caught his father's eye.

"Daddy! Look what Auntie Grell taught me how to do!" He held up a handkerchief-sized doily-thing that looked very similar to a spider's web. "It's for you." Claude said proudly.

William took it and smiled down at his son.

"It is wonderful, Claude." he said, putting it up on the mantel before the boy happily skipped out of the room.

"Want to put mine up there too, dearest?" Grell teased, holding up a larger piece that looked more like a flower. William rolled his eyes.

"Only you could trash my house teaching someone to knit."

"It's not knitting! It's latch-hook!"

"Any other projects you want to share with me?"

"I might have signed Claude up for tap dancing lessons..."

William just blinked.

"Beg pardon?"

"Tap dancing." Grell repeated.

"I see... Did he acquiesce to this?"

"He seemed rather excited, actually."

"Well alright then." William said.

Grell nearly fell over in shock. "You are not going to kill me? At least threaten me with bodily harm?"

"Not today, Sutcliff. As long as Claude is happy. But if you trash my house again, you will no longer be babysitting."

"Oh please. You know you love me."

_..._

"She's tiny." Claude said bluntly.

"You were that small too, when you were born." William told his son.

"Nuh-uh!"

"You were." Grell agreed. "You were so tiny I could hold you in one hand! (If William had let me...)"

"She is beautiful Alan." William said to the reaper whom was holding the little girl.

"Thank you, William." Alan smiled, looking down at the bundle he held in his arms. "Eric is so protective of her already I don't think she will ever get a boyfriend."

"She won't need a boyfriend until she is at least a hundred and fifty, anyway." Eric protested.

Alan just rolled his eyes.

"What is her name?" Grell asked, looking over the girl with interest. It was lost on no one that the first female reaper to be born in two decades was born by the first reaper to contract the Thorns of Death in nearly a century. It seemed Alan Humphries-Slingsby was full to the brim with genetic anomalies.

"Eliana." Alan said softly. "Eliana Slingsby."

"So..." Claude said. "You had a baby 'cause you love each other?"

Alan and Eric gave one another a look, while William tried to hide by taking a sip of his coffee. He did not really want to have a birds and bees conversation today.

"Yes. We did." Eric said simply. Claude frowned in thought and turned to his father.

"Then why haven't you and Auntie Grell had a baby?"

William had been prepared for anything. Questions about where babies came from, how it worked, whom his father was...

But not that.

He choked on his coffee and did not stop coughing for two minutes. Eric was on the ground, crying through his laughter and being admonished by Alan. Grell just looked shocked.

"What?" William asked when he could finally speak again.

"Well... You love each other, don't you?" Claude asked, looking more shy now that he saw everyone's reaction to his innocent question. "Auntie Grell always says that he loves you... And I know you love him..."

William's mouth was open, and didn't answer for a moment. Eventually he straightened, coughed and said,

"Not like that, Claude."

"Oh..." the boy said sadly. "I wanted a brother..."

Grell gave William a roguish grin. He was quite proficient in inviting others to bed without saying a word.

William just gave him an exasperated glare in return.

"We will talk about it later, alright Claude?"

"Fine," the young boy sighed.

Eric had yet to stop laughing.

...

_"__They had a child?" Ciel asked. "I remember them. That Eric fellow, he was the one responsible for the mass murders. And that Alan man... He died saving me." _

_"__Yes." William sighed, pushing up his glasses. "It was a sad day for the dispatch. Their poor girl. She is no longer a child of course, but yet not quite an adult either. Just a few decades younger than Claude."_

_"__I've never seen her." Sebastian noted. _

_"__Of course you haven't. She is studying to be a record keeper at the Cinematic Library. Eric practically forbade her from field work, afraid that she would contract the Thorns too. It was quite lucky that dispatch work never appealed to her in the first place."_

_"__So she was left alone?" Ciel asked, bringing the topic back around. _

_"__Felling sympathetic for us reapers, little demon?" WIlliam asked. He didn't give Ciel time to do anything more than flush in indignation before answering his question. "She went to live with her uncle, Eric's brother, for a while. I believe she has now moved in with her boyfriend Ronald."_

_"__That irritating Knox fellow?" Sebastian asked. "How improper for a young lady to live with her suitor." _

_"__Knox? Who is Knox?" Ciel asked. _

_..._

William and Grell ceased their conversation immediately as Claude ran into the room sobbing, diving into his father's arms.

"Claude! What is it?" William asked frantically.

"R-Ron-Ronald k-killed my friend!" The boy sobbed. William gave Grell a confused look at Grell, who shrugged.

Ronald Knox was a young boy born two years after Claude, though their slowed growth kept them in the same age group. He lived not far away, and it had only taken one chance encounter between the boys for them to become friends. This was the third time or so that they had a play-date together.

"Your friend?" William asked, just as Ronald himself came into the room. Tears were streaking down his young face too, and he was cradling a dead spider somewhat reverently in both of his small hands.

"I-I'm sorry..." Ronald whispered. "I thought it was just a bug... I didn't know it was your pet..."

"Circe wasn't my pet! She was my friend!" Claude yelled before crying harder. "And you killed her, you killed her..."

He buried his face in his father's shoulder and continued to sob.

"Grell, why don't you take Ronald home?" William suggested, before speaking to the boy in question. "It's alright, Ronald. You didn't know. You can talk to Claude once he has calmed down a bit, yes?"

The silently crying boy nodded and placed the spider down before allowing Grell to escort him away.

"Come on, Claude." William said once they were alone. "Lets go bury your friend, then shall we?"

Claude did not stop sniffling as he and his father went to the backyard and began to dig a small hole for the arachnid. William was finishing the makeshift grave when he heard Claude thanking someone behind him. He whipped around to see the Undertaker handing his son a matchbox-sized coffin and a decorative rock that could act as a headstone.

"How did you even know-!" William began, unnerved by how the Undertaker seemed to know almost everything that happened in their life as soon as it happened.

"Doesn't matter." The Undertaker cut him off. "I believe we are here for the most important day of this spider's life."

William refrained from yelling and allowed his son to peacefully bury his pet. By the time they were finished covering the spider with earth, the creepy shinigami had vanished.

Silent tears continued to stream down Claude's face, and William gently picked up his son.

"Come. I need to show you something."

"This is the Grim Reaper Library." William told his son. "This is where all of the Cinematic Records are kept that we gather from the dying."

"It's big." Claude sniffed through his tears, looking up at the shining silver building. "Why are we here, d-daddy?"

"I'll show you."

He carried his son inside, to the section of the library that was set aside just for children. No real records were kept here, but it was used to teach the young reapers about death, particularly when they come across it for the first time.

The books kept here were ordinary notebooks, each filled with children's records of the deaths that they came across. Not only would it prepare them for later life, but sought to teach their children to be accepting of death. William had made his very first record here when his childhood pet cat had died.

On the table was the most recent of the notebooks, only a little more than halfway filled, and opened to the nearest blank page.

William sat himself and Claude before it and picked up a pen.

"Help me write her record." William prodded his son. "First tell me her name, then some of the things she did while she was alive."

Claude looked surprised at first, but nodded.

"Her name was Circe Spears. She was a really nice spider, and kept my room free of bugs. She made pretty webs, and would sometimes tell me stories and sing strange songs to help me get to sleep."

William dutifully wrote down everything his son said, hoping to heaven and hell that it was his son's imagination that the spider could speak.

But now was not the time to worry about that. Today, his son needed him.

"There." William said when he was finished writing. "Now Circe can be remembered forever, and her soul can go on to the next plain of existence."

Claude gave his father a watery smile and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you daddy."

"You are welcome son."

They sat there for a long time in silence, just taking comfort in one another's arms.

"How do you do it?" Claude asked after a moment.

"Do what?"

"Reap. I get sad when my spider dies. How do you not get sad when people die?"

"Humans are not made like us. They die much more quickly than we do. It is just how they are."

"But how do you not get sad?" Claude pressed.

"We have to turn ourselves off to it. Everything dies, and our job is just a job. Do you remember Mister Alan?"

Claude nodded.

"He's sick because he became too attached, too sympathetic. He felt bad for the humans so much, that he became ill with a disease known as the Thorns of Death. That is what happens to us if we do not separate our jobs from our feelings."

Claude's eyes widened. He didn't want to scare his son, but nor did he want his baby boy to die just because of his large heart.

"We must turn hesitation into resolve," William explained, "Our passion into composure, and human life into records. That is the mark of a true reaper."

...

_"__I have heard that before." Sebastian cut in, causing William to raise an eyebrow at him. "I mean to say, Claude used to repeat it often, with several variations of the words. The last thing he ever said was something very similar."_

_"__It does not surprise me." William said, steadfastly ignoring the mention of his son's last words. He did not want to hear them coming from the demon's mouth. "Claude turned it into a mantra of sorts. His compassion never lessened, not even when he started his training. I was worried that it would cause him to fail his exams, or worse. But he never gave in, and merely repeated my own words over and over to harden his resolve."_


	9. The Truth Comes Out

"Dr. Faustus was an idiot." Claude said, looking at the piece of human literature as he lied down flat on his back, one leg over the side of the couch. His class had been assigned the reading of _The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus_ by Christopher Marlowe in order to better understand what humans thought of demonic contracts. Not much of it was true.

"He is also fictional." William pointed out. He always grew nervous when his son got onto the subject of demons. "But why do you say so?"

"Well, first of all, he called up this demon just to see if he could. He didn't really need anything." Claude said with a roll of his eyes. "And then once he has this Mephistophilis fellow, he asks for twenty-four years on earth with the demon as his servant. Twenty-four. That's it. Then, he spends these twenty-four years doing practically nothing! He plays pranks on the Pope and amuses others with parlor tricks. What a waste of a soul." Claude groused, tossing the book to the side. He gave a whistle, and a bright yellow canary swooped down from its perch on the window sill to sit on his finger, allowing his master to stroke his feathers. Claude had been given two of these birds by his aunt several birthdays ago, when the reaper proudly informed his nephew that their names were Sunshine and Daisies. William still had a hard time not rolling his eyes at it.

"It's also ironic that Faustus means favorable and fortunate in Latin." Grell said, taking a sip from his bright red coffee mug. The annoying reaper was almost a constant presence in their home these days. "He didn't seem that fortunate to me."

"You said it, Aunt Grell." Claude nodded as the doorbell rang. "That will be Ronald. We are going over to his house to study some, so I'll be back late." He stood up and shouldered his backpack, giving his father and aunt a hug.

"Sure. I know what sort of 'studying' you will be doing." Grell said with a wink. "Just don't do anything I wouldn't do. No, wait, bad example. Don't do anything your _father_ wouldn't do."

"Aunt Grell!" Claude blushed. "We are just friends!"

"Well that is how your dad and I started out. Just friends, and now look at what fiery lovers we are!" Grell said, going over to William and hugging his head so that his face was squished.

"Ge'offme'utcliff." William tried to growl. The effect was ruined since the words were muffled past coherency.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm still waiting on that little brother!" Claude said as he walked out the door.

"Don't forget to use protection!" Grell shouted after him. William could hear his son groaning, and Ronald laughing.

Once Claude was gone, the red reaper released the other shinigami from his hold.

"Was that really necessary?" William asked.

"Of course it was, Willy. But now that the teenager is out of the house! Lets go out tonight! Go eat at a nice place, order a few drinks, fall into bed together..."

"No, Grell."

"Fine." he pouted. "It doesn't have to be me. It can be any man that catches your eye. You need to get laid, Willy dear..."

"Because that worked so well last time." William snarked.

There was a pause.

"William... You just made a joke! Albeit, a depressing and morbid one, but an actual joke! Break open the champagne, we need to celebrate!" The reaper started to pull on William, most likely in order to drag him off to some bar or another, but stopped as the words sunk in.

"Willy, what did you mean, _last_ time? Do you honestly mean to tell me that you haven't slept with anyone since? That was nearly two hundred years ago!"

"And I haven't particularly wanted to repeat the experience." William snarled. As far as William was concerned, the incident had been nothing but painful and humiliating, leaving him limping for a week without any gratification from the act at all.

"William..." Grell said in an almost pitying voice. "You can't just- I know it might not have been the best, and a bit traumatizing, but it isn't always like that..."

"I do not want to go out tonight, Grell." William said again, cutting him off. "Claude's reaper exam is this week. I wouldn't be able to enjoy myself even if I did go. I'm too worried at the moment."

He turned away from his friend, and was glad that the reaper had decided to drop it for once, and Grell returned to his coffee in silence.

...

"Claude?" William asked as the front door opened and he saw his son. "Claude, you are early..."

Right now, Claude was supposed to be taking his final reaping exam, judging a soul on earth with a partner, and was not expected to be back for another two hours, perhaps more if he passed. Claude looked up at his father with red-rimmed eyes, and then immediately ran to the bathroom. William followed in panic as he heard his son retch into the toilet.

"Claude! Claude, what is it! What happened?" he asked, dropping to his son's side. Claude emerged from the porcelain bowl and covered his mouth with his hand. He had to take several shuddering breaths before he could remove his palm to speak.

"W-we were taking our exam... Being very thorough... B-but then she died an-and I-I-I-"

He clasped his hand over his mouth again before heaving into the toilet again.

"Did you fail?" William asked gently. "It's alright son..."

Claude shook his head and re-emerged. "N-no... It's not alright. I didn't just fail, dad. I-I-I... I _ate_ her. I _ate_ her _soul_." Then he broke down into harsh, disjointed sobs.

William went into a state of blind shock at his son's words, his mouth opening and finding himself unable to move. This was all his fault. He should have told Claude, warned him, and maybe this wouldn't have happened.

"And now you hate me..." His son said miserably.

This snapped William back into the moment.

"No! No, Claude, I do not hate you. I could never hate you."

"But I _ate_ her! You should have seen the horrified way Ronald looked at me-"

William pulled his nearly grown son into his arms and held him, wishing he could take all of his boy's pain away.

"This is my fault Claude." William sighed at last. "I kept the truth from you too long. I hoped... I had hoped it would never matter."

"What?" Claude asked, confused. "Hoped what wouldn't matter?"

"Your father."

"My father? I always assumed my father was Aunt Grell, and that you just didn't want people to know." Claude said, growing even more perplexed.

"A lot of people think that." William admitted with a sigh. "But no. Your father was a demon, Claude."

He felt his son go stiff in his arms, and then pull away with a horrified look. He stayed frozen like that for a moment before rapidly shaking his head.

"No! No, that is not true! It can't be! You wouldn't have! I can't be one of them!" Claude said, gradually beginning to shout.

"It is true, I'm afraid. I was young and fell pray to a demon's charms. I have never regretted it though, because it gave me you." William said. "And you are not a demon. You are my son. And a reaper."

"Not anymore." Claude whispered, looking down. "I ate a soul, and the Reaper Association knows." He pulled his head back up again to look desperately at his father as the tears continued to pour down his face. "They are coming for me, and they are going to kill me."

William's answer was halted by a swift knock at the door. Claude's face grew pale.

"Mr. Spears. This is HR department. We've come to talk to you." came a voice from the door.

"I'll hold them off. You hide. Come back when it is safe, alright?" William said. Claude nodded fearfully as his father got up and went to the front door.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" William asked, a disapproving stare on his face. "I am off the clock, I will have you know-"

"It is about your son."

"Claude?" William let his shock show. "What is it? Did something happen during the exam?"

"Unfortunately yes. Please sit down Mr. Spears."

William did as the young reaper asked, and waited. Was he about to be stricken from his title? Arrested?

"We have reason to believe that the demons have tampered with your son. Perhaps recently, or even as far back as his birth. The reaper known as Claude Spears, at two seventeen this afternoon, ingested the soul he was sent to reap. We theorize that demons unknown traded your son with one of their own to infiltrate our ranks."

Of course that is what they would believe. No one would possibly think that Claude's bloodline stemmed from a mistake of William's.

The shinigami fell silent, feigning shock as the other reapers searched his home. He held back a sigh when they pronounced the house all clear.

"Call us if you should see him." The head of the group ordered. "And remember Mr. Spears, no matter what form that thing might take, it is not your son."

...

It was two weeks before Claude came back, appearing from no where in the middle of the night.

"Claude!" William gasped when he came downstairs in the morning. His son was no longer crying, or seemed helpless. He was harder somehow, forced to grow up on his own. His eyes were hard, but he still wore his fake reaper glasses.

"Hey dad." He rasped without looking up.

William ran to him and pulled his son into his arms.

"I was so worried about you..."

"I'm fine. I'm fine dad. Really." Claude said, pulling away from William. "I broke into the demonic records in the Reaper's Library. My father was Michaelis, right? You went after him two hundred years ago, right before I was born. I saw his picture too. It's eerie how much I look like the two of you..."

"Yes, it was him." William sighed. Claude just nodded. A tense moment passed before he spoke again.

"I went to go see him."

"You did _what_!"

"I just wanted to see. I thought if I could see how horrible he was, I could draw the distinctions between him and myself, and I could put it all behind me." Claude clenched his fist and looked down at his lap. "But he _wasn't_ horrible. He was strutting around after some new master, a child, acting like a father. Obviously, he can be a parent when there is something in it for him."

"This is why I didn't want you to know. Demons... I do not even know where to begin. They are the basest, most unfeeling, _deceiving _creatures that have ever roamed the earth. I didn't want you to have to deal with that as your father."

"The bastard." Claude growled. "I'll get him. I'll get him back for ruining my life before it began-"

"Claude, stop this." William said, fearfully. "Don't be like this. Being so vengeful isn't you."

"They wanted me to be a demon, Father. And so they got one."

And William flinched as his son's eyes turned an unnatural shade of fiery red.


	10. Chance Encounter

_"__He vanished only moments afterward, and I didn't hear anything about him for at least four years." William said. "I searched for him, of course, but my son had hidden himself well. When I wasn't looking for him, I was throwing myself into my work, trying to forget everything. Grell was not much better off. For the first time in his life, he was wearing black, as if he was in mourning. One day, his death scythe was reported missing, and he just didn't come back at all. I began looking for him as well, but I found nothing. I was alone. Until that day in eighty eight."_

_..._

_"_Hello William."

The shinigami in question did not even bother lifting his head from his hands. He knew whom the voice belonged too. The damn Undertaker.

"What do you want?"

"What I want? Doesn't matter."

William resisted snarling. That was the man's answer for everything. It did bloody _too_ matter.

"Then why are you here?"

"I just thought you would want to hear the fabulous joke I heard earlier today. The demon Michaelis told it to me. Though, I suppose his name is Sebastian these days. In any case, he came into my shop with his newest little master and told me one of the best jokes I've heard in years."

"Oh? Why should I care?" William asked, growing nervous.

"I thought you would appreciate it. Here is the punchline..." The Undertaker moved closer so that he was inches from Will's face. "He said, 'I fucked the Head Administrator of the Grim Reaper Staffing Association'."

There was a moments silence before Undertaker burst out into laughter once more. "I knew you bedded a demon, but I didn't know _who_! And it was _Michaelis_ of all demons! Hahahahah!"

William could take it no longer. The younger shinigami hit his superior smack in the face, making the grey reaper's hat fly from his head and his mouth drop open, his laughter halted.

"You think this is _funny_!" William shrieked. "My son has been _missing_ and on the run for the past three years! I might not ever see him again! My son is gone, Grell has disappeared, and I have _nothing_ anymore! And you find my misfortune _funny_!"

The Undertaker was at a loss for words for the first time William had ever seen him, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

"_Get out!_ Get out of my house and leave me the hell alone! And don't you ever come back!"

"But don't you want to know who was with him?" the Undertaker asked.

"Not particularly, no." William snarled. All he wanted was this creep out of his house, out of his life! He was tired of it!

"Not even if it was your little red friend?"

This made William freeze. Grell? Grell had been with Michaelis? Why? The Undertaker seemed to have read his mind and answered for him.

"Dressed up as a butler, he was, serving a lady all in red known as Angelina Durless. It was a very good disguise, but I know a reaper when I see one." The Undertaker smiled.

"And... And did he hear the punchline?" William asked softly.

"Oh no. Good old Sebastian made sure the two of us were alone before he told me, just like the courteous little demon he is."

...

_"__Little?" Sebastian interrupted, before he was silenced by a glare from both his master and the reaper. _

_"__That was the joke you told?" Ciel asked his butler. "How... distasteful." _

_"__And for once I find myself in agreement with a demon." William snarled. "But using the information that the Undertaker had given me on both Grell and yourself, I was able to discover that Grell was assisting the Jack the Ripper case and catch up with the pair of you by the following night. I came just in time to see the very end of the resulting conflict." _

_..._

"You scream very nicely. As a reward, I will kill you with your cherished toy." the demon smiled as he pulled the blade over his head.

Watching Sebastian Michaelis about to kill his friend with his own death scythe made William's blood boil. How dare he! That bastard! Hadn't he taken enough from him!

"Please stop!" Grell begged pitifully from under the demon's foot.

"So sorry." Michaelis smiled. Then he swung the weapon.

William cast his own scythe to intercept the demon's killing blow, but not before he heard the reaper's last attempt to save his own life.

"I can tell you who killed the boy's parents!"

The two scythes met in a shower of sparks, and every eye present turned to the roof-top on which he stood.

"I apologize for interrupting." He said coldly, doing his very best to act as though he had never seen this demon before in his life, let alone had his child. He refused to let Michaelis see how much he had effected him, and resolved to be as professional as possible. He retracted his scythe and took comfort in the uniform, soothing, clicking sound that it made.

"Let me introduce myself, I am William T. Spears, the Head Administrator of the Grim Reaper Staffing Association." He paused to push up his glasses with the pointed end of his weapon. "I came to take charge of that reaper there."

It was best to pretend that he was not familiar with Grell either. Not that he wanted to be at the moment. He was furious with the shinigami.

"Will!" the other reaper beamed, his swollen face shining in relief as his saviour dropped down from the rooftops. "William, you came to save me-" The rest was muffled as William landed on the back of his head, slamming Sutcliff's face into the ground again. William knew that it was harsh, but he had to. First of all because Michaelis might just kill them both if he thought he was going to go easy on the rouge reaper, second because he didn't want Grell to say anything stupid. Thirdly because it made William feel better.

"Attention Reaper Grell Sutcliff, you have violated several regulations." William read out of his book without emotion. "First, you have killed people not on the To-Die List. Second you have taken a death scythe without proper authorization. And finally, you have offered someone strictly classified information regarding the identity of his relatives' murderer."

Then he slammed Grell's face into the ground again, to warn him to keep his mouth shut. William shut the book in his hand, which then disappeared, going back to it's place in the library. Then William stepped off of Sutcliff, swallowing his pride long enough to bow his head.

"I apologize for all the trouble this wretch has caused." William hated how mechanical his voice sounded, but he knew that if he broke protocol for just one second, he would break. He used his scythe to pull a business card out of his jacket, which he then shoved into the demon's face. It was a small victory, but William enjoyed having the demon on the pointy end of his shears.

"Here. Please accept my card." Although what he really wanted was for the demon to drop dead. Michaelis took the pro-offered item in two fingers without the slightest change in expression.

"Honestly." William growled. "I never thought I would see the day when I would bow my head to demon scum like you. This is a disgrace to all Grim Reapers."

Michaelis smirked, and spoke so quickly that William was sure that he was the only one to hear the demon speak.

"And getting on your knees before me isn't?" Before William could so much as twitch in anger, Michaelis then spoke up, so that their audience could hear. "Perhaps you should keep a better eye on your minions, so they don't trouble us."

Michaelis made a motion as though he was going to toss the card aside, but with all the demon speed befitted to him, seemed to think better of it and tucked it inside his vest, giving William a wink.

The reaper was doing his best not to react, not even by flushing, even though he wanted nothing more than to kill him.

"Humans are so easily... _tempted_. They will do anything in the grip of utter despair. They will grasp at any thread that promises to save them from unhappiness, no matter the consequences. _You_ should know that."

William was well aware of the innuendo Michaelis was placing on his words, and finally lifted his head, standing straight again. He met the demon's eyes, furious.

"That's a charming bit of hypocrisy." He said in a clipped tone. "You demons capitalize on that quality more often than we do."

"That I cannot deny." Michaelis said with a leering grin.

"Right now you seem to be a tame dog." William said, looking over at the Phantomhive boy whom Michaelis was contracted to, pushing up his glasses again. "That makes you far less dangerous than the rabid mongrels that roam free. Now, come with me, Grell. We are leaving."

He grabbed his friend by the hair and began dragging him off, completely unsympathetic to his plight.

"We are already short handed and here you've gone and landed me with even more overtime." He said, making idle talk. "The board is not going to be pleased."

And then there was a ringing in the night, the sound of a scythe slicing through the air. William did not even have to turn his head. He caught Grell's weapon with two fingers as it flew by his face. He tilted his head just the slightest in the demon's direction.

"I assume you will want that, yes?" Michaelis asked with a saccharine smile.

"Yes, thank you." William dead-panned, letting the scythe drop onto Grell, who grunted in pain. Will just pushed up his glassed one last time.

"Now if you will please excuse us."

Then he pulled his friend off into the shadows.

...

_"__You mean to tell me that your entire conversation centered around your one-night tryst?" Ciel asked. _

_"__Indeed." William said. "Of course, I read much more into it than was obviously intended. I believed the consequences he spoke of to be the fact that I had conceived."_

_"__It was purely misfortune on my part." Sebastian said. _

_"__Well, why were you so angry with Grell? I don't particularly blame you of course, but it does not resemble your previous interactions with one another." said Ciel. _

_..._

"William! William, let me up! Please!" Grell begged as his superior continued to drag him along by the hair.

"Do be quiet." William snapped, not in the mood to talk.

"William! What's wrong? I know you aren't pleased with me, but you have never been so mad at my insubordinate behavior before!"

"Your behavior!" William snapped, finally letting go of his hair so that Grell's head smacked heavily against the pavement.

"Ouch!"

"You think this is about your _behavior_? I could care less if you were Jack the Ripper at the moment!"

"Then... what...?"

"I'm angry because when everything quite literally went to _Hell_ and I needed you, you just got up and left! Vanished! For three years!" William snapped. "And then when I find you again, you aren't crumbling and depressed like I worried you would be, but back to your vibrant and colorful self, without a care in the world! Never mind that I've been searching every spare minute to find you and Claude! And not only are you happy as a little lark, but when I do, in fact, find you again, you are engaged in a death match and flirting with none other than my son's _father_!"

Grell's mouth opened, and he blinked several times in surprise.

"That... That was...?"

"Yes, Sutcliff. That was Claude's father." William hissed.

Grell took another moment to marvel at the fact that he wasn't already dead.

"I can see why you were attracted to him." Grell said finally. Then he shrieked and scrambled away as William jumped at him, hands at his throat.

"Ack! Calm down, Willy...!"

"Don't you dare call me that, Sutcliff! I will not calm down! I just had to bow to _Michaelis _because of _you_!"

"I didn't know- Ouch!"

William had caught him again, and was now attempting to strangle the red reaper. He had suppressed the urge to do so for nearly two hundred years, and he felt he had the right to let go for a moment.

"Willy... choking..." Grell spluttered.

"That's the idea."

"William..."

The shinigami eventually sighed and turned Grell loose. He had enough paperwork to do without actually killing the wretch. Grell gasped for air, and for a few minutes all that could be heard was the reaper as he tried to regain his breath.

"I'm sorry I left, William." He said finally.

"You should be."

"... Forgive me?"

"You are insufferable."

"Please?"

William sighed. He was just so tired...

"Fine. Come on, Grell, lets go home."


	11. In the Library

William did not understand why his anger had been so potent during Grell's flirting until sometime after, when the infuriating shinigami started seeing Michaelis and his young master more regularly.

"Damn little brat!" William heard Grell shout as he came through the door. "Willy! The Phantomhive boy was mean to me!"

"What? Why were you even with him?" William asked. "You were supposed to be on duty."

"I was! I was investigating the unusual activity exhibited by Drocell Keinz when I came across him. Not my fault. But he promised that if I protected him that-! Um..." He trailed off.

"Promised you what?" William asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Um... er... adaywihbassy."

"Come again?"

"A day with Bassy. Don't hurt me! I couldn't help myself, you should know! And he said he could tie a cherry stem into a knot with his tongue! But then the damn little brat didn't follow through." Grell pouted, crossing his arms and snipping his safety-scissor scythes.

"You traded your help for a day with Michaelis?" William hissed.

"Don't kill me...?"

William just gritted his teeth and stood, leaving the room and Grell behind him.

…...

Reapers never made mistakes. They never misplaced things, never turned things in late. Which left only one option; the missing Cinematic Records were stolen. And of course, Grell was the one being sent to investigate them. William had no idea why, he should have suspected that something like this would happen.

The moment the demon stepped through the door, William let loose his scythe, which Michaelis avoided with just a tilt of his head. Grell was not so fortunate, and had to bend over backwards just to keep from being speared.

"Ah, it is you. I thought I smelled something unpleasant." William said, not taking his eyes off of the inhuman butler.

"Will!" Grell said in surprise.

"To think a demon would have the nerve to set foot in our territory," William went on with a tilt of his head.

"Will, wait! I'm looking for the Doomsday Books on your orders!" Grell protested.

"Honestly." William said, closing his eyes. Wasn't one close encounter with the demon enough? Why did Grell keep putting him in these situations? "A grim reaper, willingly inviting such vermin in here? Grell Sutcliff, you appear to want a further demotion." he said, staring at his friend.

Grell looked afraid and began nervously clicking his safety-scissors.

"W-What will it be this time?" he asked.

"Exterminating vermin is all well and good," Michaelis interrupted, "but are you sure you ought to let your lice infestation go unchecked?"

William blinked in surprise, but understood the reference. It was humiliating that a demon knew before he did.

"An angel." He growled to himself.

"Yes." Michaelis nodded.

"It seems I'll be late getting home tonight." William sighed, closing his eyes and pushing up his glasses with his scythe. "Come with me, quickly. Really, Grell, why _this_ demon? Why not any other?" He asked as he began to lead them down the halls.

"Not my fault." Grell said again, pouting. "Not that I mind. I get to spend time with Bassy. We had our first date today you know-"

"We did not." Michaelis said. He was ignored by both reapers.

"-and we cuddled in the pews while we watched some ritual-thingy! It was so romantic!" Grell sighed happily, before he frowned again. "It isn't fair! I don't see why you got to be with him and I can't!"

William came to a dead stop, causing the others to do the same. He took a deep breath through his nose and gripped his scythe tighter. He could _feel_ that damned demon's grin.

"If it is any consolation, Grell," William said in an even tone, "It wasn't very good. Not pleasurable in the slightest."

Then he started walking again, reveling in his victory. The other two stayed motionless in shock.

"Are you coming?" He asked over his shoulder.

...

_Ciel looked his butler dead in the eye, smirking and eventually giving in and ceaselessly chuckling darkly. _

_Sebastian glared back, but it did nothing to stop his young master from laughing. William allowed himself a smirk as well. _

_When it became apparent that Sebastian's glare was not going to silence his young master, the elder demon turned onto the reaper. _

_"__Were you serious or just making a point?" _

_"__Oh, that stung, didn't it, Sebastian?" Ciel asked through his laughter. _

_"__I was deadly serious. It did nothing for me. Surely you realized that, or are you that inattentive? I thought demons were supposed to have superior eye-sight to reapers." William said. _

_Sebastian snarled, and Ciel continued to laugh in his disturbing manner. _

_..._

They reached the door at the end of the hall, which Michaelis burst through without pause.

"No..." Grell gasped at the sight before them.

"Young master!" Sebastian shouted.

The angel had the poor boy in her arms, watching him with a look of possessive satisfaction on her face as the Cinematic Records flowed out of him in a steady reel.

"His past is being rewritten." She told them. "He's being purified, made clean and white as snow."

"Purified?" Michaelis asked, horrified. William got a better grip on his scythe. Angels were generally less troublesome than demons, simply for the fact that they did not often get in the reapers way. But Will would rather take on a hoard of demons than one angel.

"No one wants to harbor hatred." The female divine-being went on. "That holds true for him as well."

The boy made a soft sound of unrest in his sleep, reminding William very much of when Claude used to have nightmares.

"Young master!" Michaelis cried again, beginning to run forward.

"Don't." William snapped at him, and he was somewhat pleased to see that the demon had listened. "If you forcibly stop her now, the child's past won't be properly contained in him, and he will become something less than human."

The demon returned his frightening stare back to the angel.

"Yes, he will become white as snow." She declared happily.

"Purified? My young master?" the demon continued to growl as the boy gave soft gasps in discomfort. William felt the beginnings of resentment stir in him again. Claude had been right. Michaelis was perfectly capable of caring for someone. It was clear to anyone with eyes that this demon cared about the boy for more than just a meal.

...

_"__What?" Ciel asked, looking at Sebastian. The other being did not look back, and William enjoyed seeing the discomfort and nervousness on the usually impassive face. But he did not pause in his story._

...

It felt like eternity was crammed into those few seconds as they looked down at the boy in the angel's arms with utter helplessness. William was plagued by the memories of being unable to help his own son. Until the impossible began to happen.

The Phantomhive child rose from the angel's arms and floated in midair, and his Cinematic Record began to rewind itself.

"Impossible..." William gasped.

"Young master!" Michaelis called out again, as if hoping the boy would answer him. The Record finished retracting, and the demon caught the child as he fell to the ground again.

"What a reckless thing to do." He chided the youth in his arms.

"Sebastian... good catch..." the boy said brokenly.

"You always exceed my expectations." the demon smiled fondly. "You truly are worthy of being my soul-no. My young master." He corrected himself.

William has no more doubts. The demon cared for the boy far more than a normal demon would. He would be very surprised if Michaelis still ate this boy's soul.

The angel was furious.

"The horror of such an unclean heart!" she seethed. "Depraved, stagnant, without light. I should never have showed you mercy. I shall purify you here and now."

"Then let us begin." Michaelis invited with a smile.

"Disturbances in the library fall under grim reaper jurisdiction." William said quietly to his red friend. "We shall join them, Grell."

Grell squealed with excitement and began to spout his romantic drivel, just as the Undertaker pushed past them as if there were't a demon and an angel in the library.

"Excuse me, coming through." He said politely before going to the stacks and mumbling to himself.

"Undertaker!" The Phantomhive said in surprise.

"Hello!" The grey reaper waved.

Grell looked stumped.

"Wh-what are you doing here-?!" he asked. William used his scythe to smack his friend on the top of the head.

"Show some respect!" William hissed, conveniently disregarding the fact that he had slapped the Undertaker not long ago. "This man is the virtuoso who passed judgement on the famous Robin Hood, and sent Marie Antoinette to Hell. He is a legendary grim reaper, who can make crying children willingly give up their souls."

"Now hold on!" Grell spluttered, going over to the creepy shinigami and turning him around. "How could this rag-tag, dreary old man be a legendary grim re-!"

He pulled back the Undertaker's bangs and grew pale before squealing and pulling the older shinigami into his arms.

"Make love to me!" Grell begged, which made William feel angry again.

"My, my, what a pleasant family reunion." The Undertaker observed. "The lovers, the aunt, the step-child, all that is missing is-" he fell silent under William's glare, which threatened the most painful of deaths without the decency a proper funeral.

A bright light captured their attention again as the troublesome angel took flight.

"As you seem to be busy, I will begin my purification at the abbey." She told them.

"Running away again?" Seba- Michaelis- shouted in her direction.

"I shall show you all what happens to a world ruled by impurity." She warned as she began to fade. Sebastian- _Michaelis_- threw his weapons of choice (silverware) in her direction, but they skittered in every direction as the portal closed.

Grell ran for the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"It won't open!" He grunted as he struggled with the door handle.

"Unfortunately, it looks as though we have been sealed in." William growled darkly.

A large bang caught all of their attention as a book flew violently from the shelves and opened up to a certain page.

"What is this?" William murmured to himself as he picked it up and began to read. "It looks as though it is the Cinematic Record of someone who is in that abbey."

"Seriously?" Grell asked.

"Interesting." William said as words began to appear on the page. "An angel of massacre is descending upon an abbey near Preston."

"What?" the Phantomhive asked. "An angel of massacre?"

"It _is_ troubling." William agreed as the Undertaker took the book from his hands with a smile.

"Ah, yes. I see it now." The Reaper agreed, just as his sleeve was grasped by the boy.

"Stop her now." the child said firmly.

"Oh, master. How charitable." the demon smirked. "I thought your intent was to put an end to this cult for once and for all."

"I don't want to help them. I just don't want _her_ to get her way. That's all." the boy snarled. It sounded as though he was trying to convince himself more so than his butler.

"But what are we supposed to do?" Grell asked, one hand on his hip. "We can't even find a way out of here."

"No, not true." William said, pushing up his glasses with his scythe.

"Eh?" Grell asked him.

"There is a way." William went on. He was a bit reluctant to share this information, particularly while a demon and Grell were in the room. Not many people were given the authorization to know about this, and those two would have been at the bottom of the list. Who knew what kind of havoc they could create? "We have a tool, the ultimate reaper tool to which we managers have access." He pushed up his glasses again and continued. "The Death Bookmark."

"A bookmark?" the Phantomhive asked. William could not figure out if he was curious or skeptical.

"Heheheheh. And it is pink!" The Undertaker smiled, pulling one out from his sleeve. "Isn't that lovely?"

He placed the Bookmark down on the page, and the words stopped appearing.

"If we use this to halt the story we can make some editorial changes." He explained to the others. He brought forth a pen that matched the Bookmark and began scribbling with a grin. "Now I've just added that Sebastian Michaelis appears suddenly."

The demon beside them was whisked away.

"Ah! Oh no! Bassy!" Grell cried.

"All of the sudden, there is a dramatic turn of events as the grim reapers William T. Spears and Grell Sutcliff appear in the abbey."

William felt himself be pulled away and found himself standing in said abbey with the angel in question before him. She turned just as he arrived, and he extended his scythe so the blades caught her in the throat and pinned her to the wall.

"Right then. Let's get to work." William said, reaching into his jacket and pulling out a spare scythe and throwing it to his left. Grell appeared beside him just in time to catch it.

"Oh! A brand new death scythe!" Grell squealed, needlessly twirling it before aiming it at the angel and hitting her in the hand.

"Well done!" Grell said happily.

"You shall wash and return it when this is over." William told him, and Grell's excitement evaporated instantly.

"So cruel." he pouted.

"This could be fun." Sebastian grinned, stepping between them, fanning his knives. "How about we play a little game of darts?"

He threw two, hitting her in the side and arm. She gasped in pain.

"Oh. I missed." he smiled. "Whatever do you think I should aim for next?"

"Oh! Pick me! I want to play!" Grell cried, putting his hand in the air and jumping up and down. William resisted rolling his eyes at the blatant sadism.

"A demon all right." he said.

The angel writhed under their weapons for a moment more before smirking and beginning to glow. She then let out a scream that shook the very foundations of the building, causing the stone to crack.

"What is this?" Sebastian asked. "Does she mean to die alongside us?"

"Snuff out the unclean! Snuff out the unnecessary! Snuff out the unwanted! End them! End them!" The angel screeched.

"Eh, boys, see the ceiling?" Grell asked nervously.

A word from the demon snapped their audience back to their senses, and the intelligent ones began to run.

"Now it is our turn." William said. It was time to get Grell and get out of here before either of them got hurt. Especially the red idiot. Trouble was drawn to him. "We will retreat, Gre-" he began, only to find that his friend was already sprinting for the exit.

William sighed and followed him at a much slower pace. Today was giving him a headache. A security breach, angels, demons, having to work with Claude's father...

"Honestly. Never mind overtime. I want a day off." he groused.

…...

"Out of curiosity, why were you in the library?" William asked the Undertaker once they had reconvened at his shop in London. The man had served them tea in several beakers, but William was loath to drink his. Who knew what had been in this thing before?

"It was this fellow here who reminded me of something." The Undertaker said, motioning to Grell. "There were some Cinematic Records that I had neglected to return."

"You must be joking." the Phantomhive sighed.

"Certainly not. In fact, two of them belonged to a late Lord and Lady Phantomhive. Would you like to know what they said?"

"No." the boy snapped after a moment. "Come Sebastian. We are leaving."

Only once they were gone did William turn to the Undertaker and ask,

"And why did you check out those records, pray tell?"

"Heheheheh. Doesn't matter."


	12. London Burning

**This is a short chapter, but it shows the end of season one. I didn't feel right combining the end of this season and the next season in one chapter. **

London was up in flames. People were dying by the thousands, and yet their hearts were gone, their souls useless. Black clouds rose from the dead in sinister columns that seemed to hold up the sky. It was among the corpse-strung streets that William found Grell and the Undertaker, the latter explaining what was happening to the former.

"So someone has been stealing souls." William cut in.

"Will!" Grell gasped in surprise.

"While the taking of souls is necessary, it is the provence of reapers. On this one occasion, I am willing to take on unpaid overtime." William went on, giving a small glance at the team that he had brought with him. This had the stench of that angel all over it. He took Sutcliff's death scythe from where it had been attached over his back and threw it to his friend."Here, Grell."

The red-head caught it and began laughing with maniacal glee as he swung it around and revved the engine.

"You are all expected to take out a goodly number." William told his men, ignoring Grell. It wasn't as if he would listen anyway. "The after-party will be at business expense." he added in a disapproving manner. Then with a wave of his hand, they all got to work. The Undertaker and Grell were the most enthusiastic, reaping with passion and flair. William preferred to conserve his energy and reap at a slower, more paced rate. There was no need to waste all of his stamina at once.

"Come on, Willy! Lighten up! This is fun!" Grell called.

"This is work. It most certainly isn't the place for fun."

"Please? For me?"

"Grell..." he said in a warning tone.

"Oh, fine. I won't bother you. But I will be buying you a drink at the after-party, and you have to drink _all_ of it."

William rolled his eyes. It was a small price to pay if it meant he got to work in peace.

"Fine. As long as you don't drug it."

"Yay!" The red reaper squealed before running off in the opposite direction. William sighed, pushed his glasses up farther onto his nose, and continued to work.

By the time the sun rose again, the masses had stopped dying, and all of the wayward souls had been collected. All William wanted to do was go home and sleep, but of course, that was no longer an option.

"Hooray! Ready for the after-party, Willy?" Grell asked, threading his arm with William's.

"If I have to be." he groused.

"Don't be such a wet blanket. Going out will be good for you. You will see."

"You're coming too, boss?" One of the team, Demetri, asked.

"Yes! He's my date!" Grell said.

"Grell, I am not your date." William replied with a raise of his eyebrow.

"Well I say you are. So there."

William just gave a long suffering sigh and did not argue anymore. He did not have the energy to fight with the stubborn reaper.

Thankfully, the after-party wasn't very raucous, even if it was large. Everyone who had been out reaping were as tired as he was, so it was fairly tame in comparison to some to of the staff parties.

"Here you are." Grell said, handing William a cup.

"What is it?" William asked, sniffing the contents.

"Just drink it."

William gave a small smirk and took a sip. He was more of a scotch and whiskey type of fellow, but it wasn't bad.

Grell burst out smiling, as if he didn't believe that he would actually be able to get William to drink.

"Oh, don't look so shocked, Sutcliff. I am a man of my word, after all." William huffed.

…...

William woke up the next morning, not on his bed as he had expected, but on his couch. Not only did he have a crick in his neck, but he also felt as though someone had been pounding on his head with a jackhammer.

He groaned as he sat up, and tried to remember the night before. One drink had turned into two, and two had turned into four... Then he couldn't remember much.

A yawn distracted him, and William turned to see Grell coming out of his bedroom wearing one of his shirts. Well, that explained why he was on the couch.

"What happened?" he asked the other reaper.

"Coffee first, Will." Grell yawned again. "Then questions."

"Grell-"

"You didn't do anything embarrassing, William. I wish you had, it would have made wonderful blackmail. But you just drank until you passed out. Only _you_ would be a boring drunk."

William gave a sigh of relief as Grell made himself at home, fixing coffee in his red mug.

"So you just decided to sleep over?" William asked once the other reaper had sat down.

"By the time I brought you here I was exhausted. And I thought the least you could do was repay me by letting me use your bed. Though I would have much preferred it if you were in it with me."

He gave a lecherous smile and William just rolled his eyes. Everything was back to normal.


	13. Life into Death

**Season Two, after the episode "Bedewed Butler"**

It wasn't too long after London's burning when William found Claude again. A report had come through declaring signs of dangerous demonic activity; a large battle too close to a large group of humans at the Trancy Estate.

By the time the reaper could get there, the fighting was over-as well as the party- but William decided to make the best of it and knock on the door anyway.

He was surprised to find that it was his son who opened the door.

"Father?" Claude asked, allowing his own shock to cross his face.

"Claude!" William gasped. "You're here! I have been looking everywhere for you!"

"Father, what are you doing here?" Claude asked again, his eyes wide as he found himself being hugged.

"There was some reported demonic activity. I suppose that was you then?" William asked, pulling back to look at his son in the face. Claude took a step away from him so that he was out of the reaper's reach.

"Yes. Michaelis and I. But we came to an agreement." he said, fingering the black rose on his lapel.

"An agreement?"

"Who is this, Claude?"

Both of the Beings turned to look at who caused the intrusion, a blond child with bright blue eyes and a big smile. He skipped right over to William's son and draped himself over him, looking up at the half-demon expectantly, all the while keeping an eye on William.

"This is my father, William T. Spears. A Grim Reaper. Father, this is my contract, Alois Trancy."

William hissed through his teeth before he could stop himself.

"A contract! Have you gone insane!" He snapped. "All for revenge! You don't have to do this Claude! Come home!"

"NO!"

William looked at the boy whom had just shouted. His eyes were now filled with tears, and he was clinging to Claude as if his butler would vanish.

"No! No, Claude, you can't leave me! You are mine! Hoheo Taralna Rondero Tarel! Hoheo Taralna Rondero Tarel! Don't leave me, Claude, don't leave me..."

He grew more and more hysterical with each word, sobbing heavily.

"I am not leaving." Claude said to the child, looking his father in the eye. "Day into night. Innocence into perversion. Reaper into demon. That's what makes a Trancy butler. And I'll make one hell of a feast out of you."

...

_"That was the last time I saw him." William said softly. "To anyone else, Claude would have seemed callous. But I knew him better. He cared for the boy, more than he should have, and tried to fix it by being cold, repeating his mantra to steel himself."_

_ William paused momentarily in his story before pressing on again._

_"One day Grell came to me and told me he had seen Claude. Found him in a forest after he went to go investigate a missing soul from a child known as Alois Trancy." William continued. "He told me about how he found him during a carriage ride, and how he was forced to fight a female demon who was protecting him. By the time he was through with her, the boy was already dead, an empty shell of a body under a large tree. And Claude was sitting motionless amid the roots on the tree's opposite side." _

_..._

Grell went around to where Claude sat with his face in his hands, and still covered with the Trancy boy's blood.

"I killed him." Claude whispered without lifting his head.

"He was going to die anyway." Grell attempted to console.

"I know." Claude sighed. Grell raised an eyebrow and there was a guilty pause before the younger man explained, "I broke into the Cinematic Library to look at the death roster ages ago."

Claude's red aunt sat down beside him, touching the shoulder of the boy he had helped raise.

"I thought it would be easy." Claude went on after a moment. "I mean, I had already learned how to be detached and professional from reaper training... But it is so much harder to remain distant when you are around them all the time, when all they are asking for is your affection... I tried so hard to make him hate me, just so that it would be easier. But Alois was a damn stubborn little bugger." His voice broke on the last word. "He had lost too much blood." He continued after a moment. "I just wanted it to be quick. So I killed him. And I hate myself for it." Claude gave a bitter laugh and hid his head further as his shoulders shook. "What kind of immortal being am I?"

"Oh, Claude." Grell sighed, pulling him into his arms, "We like to pretend we are all high and mighty, and above all of these pesky human emotions. But we're not. We are just better at hiding them. I should know better than anyone that we are capable of love. And you should know too, Claude. I love you, and so does your father."

"He won't anymore." Claude said softly, seeming younger by the second. It didn't help that he was barely of age by reaper standards. By a demon's point of view, Claude would still be considered a child. "I did something... Worse than killing him..." He admitted.

"I noticed that the boy's death wasn't affecting the soul ledger." Grell said delicately. "Did you eat-?"

Claude shook his head. "No. I couldn't do it. I found it repulsive. Not his soul I mean, but the idea of eating it.

"But I took his soul anyway." Claude finished after a moment, pulling a ruby and diamond studded ring from his jacket.

"Claude, you can't keep-" Grell began, reaching for it.

"To hell I can't!" Claude snapped, backing away, closing the ring tighter in his fist. "This is my fault! He is dead because I wanted revenge against a father who couldn't care less about me! I am going to fix this. If his body is unusable-" Claude's face grew closed off again, the emotion seeping away from it. "-then I will find him a new one."


	14. Demon into Reaper

_"__So in trying to find Alois a new body, he used me, since he thought we were so similar." Ciel spoke up. "And the fact that it would get back at Sebastian was not a downside either." _

_William gave a nod._

_"__Grell did not report what had happened, out of loyalty to Claude, so the investigation into Alois's soul continued, and Ronald was sent out into the field. When I learned what was happening, I hastened to join him. There was no way he could have known that he was getting in between two demons." _

_..._

William arrived to see young Ronald and Michaelis squaring off from one another on opposite rooftops. Ronald's body language was loose and indifferent, and William couldn't tell if it was an act or if the stupid boy really underestimated the demon that much.

As he approached, William heard Sebastian speaking.

"I assume you lot got involved because of recent, unusual soul movements. Is that it? Perhaps the soul of one Alois Trancy has proven unrecoverable, for instance?"

He was so smug that William took great pride in aiming his scythe at the bastard's head, causing the demon to leap aside.

"Perhaps so," William said, interjecting into the conversation, "I might have guessed you'd be involved in this. And here you are. Hello, Sebastian."

The butler glared back at him before they began fighting each other in earnest.

"What a bother," William sighed, stabbing at Michaelis. "Working overtime yet again. All thanks to Grell."

If only the red menace would tell him things for once. This might have never been an issue.

Sebastian grabbed the shaft of William's scythe, sliding along it until they were inches apart. Rage boiled inside of William, and he pulled it from the demon's grasp.

As William and Michaelis fought below, scythe against a wooden pole the demon had procured, Ronald finally got his weapon working again.

"All right!" the young reaper cheered, turning his attention to the ongoing fight, "Now then, let's get this over with. Bet your ass I'm not working overtime."

Before William quite understood what was going on, both he and Sebastian had to push away from each other as Ronald descended upon them with a large crash.

Once the smoke had cleared, William glared at the blond.

"Blundering little fool. I don't suppose it was your intention to fell me with your death scythe as well?" he asked.

"Oh. Did I take it too far?" Ronald rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "RIght, my mistake. I am at that mischievous age, you know?"

"A Grim Reaper must always take care to judge every situation quickly and accurately." William chided, "Are those spectacles just for show?"

He pushed up his own glasses, only for a thrown silver fork to knock them off of his face. Immediately, William felt sick with fear.

This had happened before, and the last time it had occurred, Michaelis had left him pregnant. What if the demon came after him again? What if he went after Ronald instead?

He sank to the ground, hands outstretched, frantically searching for his glasses.

"Sir, he's getting away." William heard Ronald say.

"My spectacles." William muttered to himself, panic still prevalent even though Sebastian had already left. "Where are they! I can't see!"

"Pardon, sir. Shouldn't we stop him?"

William turned to where he thought the young man was.

"You fail to fully understand the great importance of a reaper's spectacles!" He shouted at him, "I'll have your scythe!"

If Knox couldn't take such a threat seriously, the boy needed serious re-evaluation. A Reaper's glasses could easily be the difference between life and destruction.

Ronald mumbled a bit to himself before coming closer. William felt the boy press something into his hands. His spectacles.

"Come on. We should go file a report." Ronald suggested. "There's no way we'll be able to find him now."

...

_"__So that is how you knew the reaper," Ciel said, "You were off fighting with him while I was getting kidnapped." _

_"__There is one thing that I do not understand," Sebastian said, ignoring the irritation that was directed at him, "If Sutcliff was partial to Claude, why did he assist me as I attempted to retrieve my young master?" _

_For a moment, his only answer was a tick in William's eye._

_ "__I will admit he had an annoyingly big crush on you," William said finally, "Grell will flirt with anything that has two legs and wears trousers. But he stayed with you primarily to see how things played out. Claude was not willing to see him any longer, and since you just barely tolerated his presence, you were whom he stayed with. If you recall, he did not help either of you through the maze, except when you threw him straight into the booby trap. Right after that, he came to me to tell me what was occurring."_

_..._

"Grell? Why do you look as though you have been put into a toaster?" William asked in surprise, putting down his book.

"It's a long story,Willy, and not the point. The point is, Claude and his father are in a deadly race to see who gets possession of Ciel Phantomhive." Grell said. "Whose body currently houses two souls, by the way."

"Excuse me?"

"I thought it would be a good father-son bonding moment at first, but then things got a little intense. As you can see by my appearance, things were getting a bit, well, heated." Grell shrugged as he used his fingers to extinguish a piece of his hair that had still been on fire.

"Oh my God..." William gasped, getting to his feet and dropping the book to the floor. "You are okay though, right? And why didn't you stop them?"

"Because! There are two of them- scratch that- three of them and only one of me!" Grell pouted.

"Three? Three demons after the same body?" William asked, growing pale.

"Yes. I predict that it is going to get very messy very soon."

"But even Michaelis is not heartless enough to kill his own son!" William protested, trying to think of any excuse not to believe what was happening.

"It might not stop him from maiming him though." Grell pointed out. "Which is why we have to go, now."

William snapped out of his horror momentarily.

"Oh no. You are not going anywhere. You are in no shape to fight. Get some rest, heal. I will deal with this on my own."

"You can't do this alone-"

"Watch me."

...

_"__But by the time I got there, your battle had already moved on to that blasted Isle of Demons." _

_ "__But why did Claude purposefully lose that ridiculous maze game?" Sebastian asked. "Why would he let himself fail, unless he was truly fed up with the boy?"_

_"__Haven't you been listening?" William asked. "He did not want to consume the boy's soul anymore. Either of them. He did not want to be the instigator of the Trancy boy's death. If he had won, his contract would have been complete."_

_"__Because Alois' wish was to dominate me and get back at Sebastian." Ciel said in understanding. "If Claude had won and Alois kept my body, the terms of their contract would have been fulfilled. Which would mean that Claude would have to devour Alois' soul."_

_"__Exactly." William said, pushing up his glasses. "But if Sebastian won, and in return consumed your own soul, young Phantomhive, your empty body would become the perfect vessel for Alois' soul to gain permanent control of. Or failing that, it could at least let the boy pass on the way souls are meant to."_

_"__And then Hannah Anafeloz's meddling ruined everything." Sebastian guessed. William nodded._

_"__When Anafeloz staked her own claim, things became even more convoluted. Even if you won, she would consume Alois. Claude had no choice but to join the fight in earnest again, since winning the fight against you would get him closest to Alois. You know the rest of the story." William finished._

_Sebastian could not look the reaper in the eye. The shame and grief was now hitting him again, and it was more than the demon could bear. He had murdered his own son. William had enough by now. He turned to leave, but was stopped by a voice that did not suit the demon Sebastian Michaelis at all. _

_"__His last request-" the demon's voice broke, and he started over as though his lapse in speech had not occurred. "His last request... was for me to place his spectacles back on him. He died as a reaper, not a demon. I thought you might want to know." _

_William did not turn around. He wasn't going to let either of them see his tears for his son. Those were his own, personal, forms of grief. The reaper took a breath and straightened his back, pushed his glasses up with his scythe, and then left the two demons on the balcony without looking back. _


	15. Epilogue

_Waiting for William some blocks away along the Paris rooftops was a familiar blood-red reaper, though he was dressed in more black than usual out of grief. _

_"__Did you kill him?" Grell asked. _

_"__No." William sighed. "He didn't know Claude was his after all. That was the first time I have ever seen a distraught demon. I suspect it shall also be the last."_

_They stayed silent for a time, looking over the Paris horizon._

_"__So that is it then?" Grell asked after a time. _

_"__That's it." _

_"__And you aren't going to go after them anymore?" _

_"__No. Why should I?" William said, looking straight in front of him. Grell shrugged. _

_"__I always assumed you still felt something for Bassy after all these years." He explained. _

_William snorted. _

_"__I never felt anything for him, Grell. Our time together was for one night only, and there were no feelings involved."_

_"__Oh. I just always assumed you still liked him, since you always acted so jealous after I flirted with him. Why would you act that way if you didn't-" Grell stopped mid-sentence, not daring to believe his own assumptions. He just looked at the other reaper with an open mouth for clarification. _

_William did not cease staring straight ahead, but he had a tint of pink to his cheeks. _

_"__If you think I am going to drop to my knees and declare my undying love for you Sutcliff, you have another thing coming." He said shortly. _

_"__No. Asking me out to dinner first is more your style, isn't it?" Grell smiled. William turned to face him finally, looking him in the eyes. _

_"__Would you like to go to dinner with me Grell?" _

_"__Why William, I thought you would never ask." _


End file.
